Kazakhstan, "religious freedom does not exist"

Cases of persecution against minority religious are growing. Members of religious communities and human rights defenders in the country report that there is no freedom of faith.

Almaty (AsiaNews / Agencies) -
In Kazakh and university libraries,
all the volumes of religious literature,
printed or imported
into the country must
be subject to monitoring by state
inspectors. In recent days, the Agency for Religious Affairs (Ara) carried out an audit on the many volumes in the National Library in Almaty. The inspection, described as "normal procedure" by
the director Gulisa Balabekova,
falls within controls required under the new Penal Code.

A few days ago, President Nursultan Nazerbayev stated
that "religious freedom is guaranteed
in the country ", but since the beginning of 2013 incidents of persecution
against minority groups have intensified.
The new Penal Code, proposed earlier this year, has tightened restrictions to
the detriment of religious groups, introducing stringent controls on the possession of
religious books, and by forbidding public
discussion of faith.

Sergei Duvanov, an
independent Kazakh journalist, tells Forum 18 that it
has become risky to even promote atheism in Kazakhstan.
This is highlighted by the recent case
of a man arrested in the east
of the country for inciting contempt of
religions. However, the minorities most exposed to the policies adopted by the government are the
Islamic groups, members of the Baptist community and Jehovah's Witnesses, the latter the victim
of numerous sanctions since the beginning of 2013.

The
same reporter
then concluded by saying that "in
Kazakhstan, people are not free to preach or promote
their faith, freedom of speech
does not extend to the religious sphere."